Thank you to all participants! We look forward to seeing you at the 3rd annual national conference, to be hosted by Laval University.

THE SECOND ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF ITS KIND IN CANADA

This event is the second national food law conference of its kind in Canada and it comes at a critical juncture for Canada's food systems—one at which Canadians are confronting both pervasive challenges and a growing set of public and political commitments to respond.

FULL PROGRAM AVAILABLE Now!EXPLORE DEVELOPMENTS OF INTER/NATIONAL SCOPE

The world is changing and food law and policy is evolving alongside it. New technology, trade agreements, consumer demands, and industry goals will change relationships between levels of government and private actors, domestic and international stakeholders and what it means to produce, procure, and plate.

QuestIons?

CONFERENCE BLOG

conference background

More about the conference organizing committee, the volunteer team, partners and sponsors.

Taking Stock: The State of Food Law and Policy in Canada will be hosted by the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law, in collaboration with our generous sponsors.

Hyman Soloway Chair in Business and Trade Law

Canada Research Chair on Occupational Health and Safety Law

This research was supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

INTERNATIONAL ACADEMIC PARTNER

Canada's Second Annual Food Law & Policy Conference

2-4 November, Ottawa, ON

Without a doubt, law and legal actors—including lawyers, researchers, policy makers, adjudicators, advocacy organizations and others—already occupy influential positions in the food space. But these actors frequently approach food systems from a particular discipline or perspective, such as agriculture, health and safety, regulation and innovation, poverty and social justice, or environmental planning. As a result, food law and policy in Canada has yet to develop around a clear understanding of its participants or its diverse sites of action. The second annual conference of its kind, Taking Stock: The State of Food Law and Policy in Canada provides an important opportunity to reflect on the current state of food laws and policies in Canada and strategize about how to improve them.

This conference comes at a critical juncture for Canada’s food systems and the laws and policies that govern them. After years of lobbying by civil society, the Trudeau government, led by the Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food, has begun to draft a National Food Policy. The federal government is also in the process of revising the Canada Food Guide and the Safe Food for Canadians Act. At the same time, the Innovation and Skills Plan, established as part of the 2017 federal budget, “has set an ambitious target to grow Canada’s agri-food exports to at least $75 billion annually by 2025”. This year also marks the 5th anniversary of the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food’s assessment of Canada’s food system and recommendations for improving governance to realize the right to food for all. This conference provides an important opportunity for civil society and the legal community to contribute to the ongoing re-thinking and redesigning of our food systems.

The objectives of the conference are to:

Provide the expertise, knowledge and innovative thinking to assist the government to strategically develop effective, sustainable and fair food law and policy in Canada;

Connect government policy makers with experienced academics, practitioners and experts in civil society;

Analyze and strategize on long-standing issues of food injustice, oppression, sovereignty and hunger in Canada;

Include Indigenous, gendered, and other marginalized perspectives in the dialogue;

Address emerging issues arising from technologies and other innovations in this area;

Examine new developments in case law and regulation that are impacting industry, producers, and consumers;

Consider the relationship between Canadian food law and policy and international law and trade, including the question of how economic, health, social justice, and environmental goals can be reconciled in terms of global food systems governance;

Contribute to the establishment and growth of a network of experts and a research agenda on “Food Law” in Canada – we will hold a workshop on building a national Food Law and Policy Association to ensure continued interactions of the network of scholars and experts beyond the annual conference;

Produce concrete, practicable proposals for the current evolution of food law and policy in Canada;

Enhance the teaching of food law in Canada – we will hold a workshop on Teaching Food Law and will gather sample curricula, with a view to exchanging best practices and documenting various approaches and teaching tools into an accessible online resource.

We look forward to welcoming participants to Ottawa in November.

Brief Background to Taking Stock: The State of Food Law and Policy in Canada

This conference continues the momentum generated from the first annual conference on Canadian food law and policy, held last year at the Schulich School of Law, Dalhousie University. Bringing together academics, lawyers in the public and private sectors, policy makers, food producers, and civil society groups and advocates, this conference aims to assess our progress on food laws and policies in Canada, and to develop specific proposals on how to improve them. This conference will have real social impact in two ways: by gathering experts on food law and policy for dialogue and community building, it will help food law and policy in Canada expand and develop in a coordinated, focused way to deal with the many challenges it faces. Secondly, the resulting proposals for new food laws and policies will have a direct impact on food producers, distributors and consumers, in Canada and in the many countries with whom Canada engages in food trade.

Glenford Jameson, food lawyer at GSJ&Co., a boutique food law firm in Toronto, and the founder and host of Welcome to the Food Court, a podcast that explores legal issues in food law and policy (glenford@gsjameson.com)

Building Food Law and Policy in Canada, Jamie Baxter (Dalhousie University, Schulich School of Law, Assistant Professor)Teaching Food Law and Policy in the United States, Melissa Card-Abela (Michigan State University, Director of the Institute for Food Laws & Regulations)

The Gowling WLG – Joel Taller Prize for Emerging Voices in Food Law will be awarded to the JD student or recent law school graduate with the best presentation in the area of food law and policy at the Canadian Food Law and Policy Conference.

The Gowling WLG – Joel Taller Prize for Emerging Voices in Food Law is in memory of Joel Taller, who passed away on May 13, 2017. Joel Taller was a pioneer and a well-known expert in the area food law in Canada. Joel practiced for 34 years in the Ottawa office of Gowling WLG, working with companies of all sizes. Joel was well respected by both industry and government for his legal expertise and sound judgment. He was instrumental in developing the Food & Beverage group at Gowling WLG, a significant team of lawyers and scientists who support companies doing business in Canada, Europe and other jurisdictions around the world.

Lessons from Four Decades of Food Policy Development in Canada, Mary Coulas (Carleton University, Political Science, PhD Candidate) and Peter Andrée (Carleton University, Political Science, Associate Professor and Associate Chair)

Blueprint for a National Food Strategy, Laurie Beyranevand (Vermont Law School, Center for Agriculture and Food Systems, Professor) and Nicole Negowetti (Harvard Law School, Food Law and Policy Clinic)

Policy as Prefiguration: Food Systems Governance and Social Movements in Canada, Amanda Wilson (Lakehead University, Centre for Sustainable Food Systems Research and Engagement, Postdoctoral Fellow) and Charles Levkoe (Lakehead University, Canadian Research Chair in Sustainable Food Systems and Assistant Professor)

Evening Social

Saturday, November 4, 2017

BREAKFAST & REGISTRATION

8:00am - 9:00am

concurrent panels 4

9:00am - 11:00am

Made in Canada?: Food and Place

Making Geographical Indications Work for Agricultural and Food-based Products in Canada, Marsha Simone Cadogan (Centre for International Governance Innovation, Post-Doctoral Fellow, International Law Research Program)

Trust But Verify: Global Food Security: Protecting Global Trade and the Domestic Consumer in the Food Sector, David Travers, QC (Barrister practicing from 6 Pump Court Chambers London, and Visiting Professor in Business Accountability, University of South Wales)

LUNCH & closing plenarytaking stock: conference reflections

1:00pm - 2:00pm

social activity in ottawa

2:15pm - 5:30pm

Rebuilding the Local Food Economy in Ottawa

Animated by Moe Garahan, Executive Director of Ottawa’s food systems organization Just Food, this tour will involve lively discussion on opportunities to rebuild the local food system, while touring two facilities:

Housed in part of a 15,000 square foot warehouse in Ottawa owned by North House Foods, the non-profit Ottawa Food Hub has three components a) the Ottawa Incubator Kitchen which promotes small food manufacturers & start-ups b) the Community Food Hub, a non-profit food wholesale initiative open to agencies serving low-income residents in Ottawa c) aggregation, co-packing and distribution services for Ottawa regional food.

Housed on a 150-acre NCC Greenbelt farmstead, the Just Food Farm acts as a Community Food and Sustainable Agriculture Hub in Ottawa. Finishing its fifth year, the farm hosts a Start-Up Incubator Farm Program, and demonstration plots of diverse food production (apiary, food forest, herbs, seed), with educational programs for the general public, and a special focus on children and youth.

Throughout the tour, we will pull on themes discussed throughout the conference, and how we apply policy and regulatory frameworks while working at the community development level.

There is no additional cost for this activity, and transportation will be provided!

Keynotes

Catherine Bate

Catherine Bate is the Leader of the Marketing, Advertising & Product Compliance Group at Miller Thomson LLP in Toronto, and is recognized as one of Canada’s leading lawyers in the field. Cathy advises on all aspects of marketing, advertising and consumer product regulatory matters. From sweepstakes to price promotions, privacy to consumer protection, performance claims to product recalls, she helps multinational corporations and start-ups alike develop practical, effective solutions and compliance strategies. Cathy provides practical advice to help manage compliance obligations in light of rapidly evolving industry trends.

Diana Bronson

Diana Bronson joined Food Secure Canada as Executive Director in March 2012 and has worked to strengthen FSC as the national voice of the Canadian food movement. Diana is trained as a political scientist and sociologist and has a professional background in journalism (CBC radio) and international human rights (Rights & Democracy) as well as international climate and technology negotiations at the UN (ETC Group.)

Diana's research, policy and advocacy work has centered on supporting social movements around the world, critically reviewing and edcucating around international trade and investment agreements, looking at the impacts of Canadian mining companies, and assessing the social and environmental impacts of emerging technologies. She has participated in many international negotiations on human rights, climate change, biodiversity, technology and sustainable development over the past two decades. She also worked in a senior position on Parliament Hill from 2006-2008. She lives and works in Montreal.

Donald Buckingham

Dr. Don Buckingham is currently the CEO of the Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute. Previously, he was the Chairperson, Canada Agricultural Review Tribunal (CART), and Chairperson, Council of Canadian Administrative Tribunals (CCAT). Dr. Buckingham has acted as a private lawyer, government lawyer, law professor, author and consultant. Between 2006 and 2009, he worked as a legal counsel to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and as an advisor to the Minister of Justice. From 1990-2006, he was a law professor at three Canadian universities where he taught courses and conducted research on agriculture, food, constitutional, administrative, tort and international law. Prior to 1990, he was a lawyer with the Halifax firm of Patterson Kitz.

Passionate about the various aspects of agriculture and food since growing up on the family farm in Saskatchewan, Dr. Buckingham then pursued his food and agriculture interests in law, completing an LL.B. at the University of Saskatchewan, a masters level law degree (D.I.L.) at the University of Cambridge; and a Doctorate in Law jointly from the University of Ottawa and Université Montpellier 1 (France) exploring national and international legal dimensions of food labelling in Canada, France and Ghana.

Co-author of five books, including Agriculture Law in Canada, and sole author of Halsbury's Laws of Canada: Agriculture and Halsbury's Laws of Canada: Food, Dr. Buckingham has also written an extensive array of chapters and entries in other books and academic journals. His most recent article, entitled “From Dunsmuirto Doré and beyond: Why administrative law matters in the protection of religious freedom in Canada”, appeared in the Fall 2016 issue of the Supreme Court Law Review. Born in Lloydminster, Saskatchewan, he has resided in Ottawa with his wife Janet for the past 17 years. He loves to travel, to cycle, to cook and to try out new recipes on unsuspecting guests and family members.

Lorraine Fleck

Lorraine Fleck is a lawyer and trademark agent based in Toronto who has practiced exclusively in the areas of intellectual property, privacy, social media and advertising and marketing law since 2005. She has been recognized by World Trademark Review magazine as a recommended trademark expert in Canada in the fields of litigation, enforcement, prosecution (trademark applications) and strategy. She has also been recommended by her peers to Best Lawyers ® in Canada for her expertise in intellectual property law.

Martha Jackman

Martha Jackman, B.A. (Queen’s), LL.B. (Toronto), LL.M. (Yale), specializes in the area of constitutional law, with a particular focus on issues relating to women and other marginalized groups. She joined the Faculty of Law at the University of Ottawa in 1988. She has held various positions within the law school: Director of Graduate Studies in Law; co-editor of the Canadian Journal of Women and the Law; Vice-Dean of the French Common Law Program; and Shirley E. Greenberg Chair for Women and the Legal Profession. She publishes primarily in the areas of socio-economic rights, equality and the Canadian Charter. She appears regularly before law reform bodies, lawyers, judges and parliamentary committees. She has acted as legal counsel in a number of important Charter cases, including before the Supreme Court of Canada in the Chaoulli case. She is a member of the National Steering Committee of the National Association of Women and the Law (NAWL/ANFD) and a former member of Equality Rights Panel of the Court Challenges Program of Canada and of the Board of Directors of the Women’s Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF/FAEJ). From 2004-2015 she was the academic director of two successive five-year, million dollar research projects: “Social Rights Accountability Project” and "Reconceiving Human Rights Practice", funded under the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council's Community-University Research Alliance Program. In 2001, she was awarded the Augusta Stowe-Gullen Affirmative Action medal in recognition of her contribution to the advancement of women’s equality. In 2007, she received the Law Society of Upper Canada Medal for her contributions to the profession and in 2015, was the recipient of the Canadian Bar Association’s Touchstone Award.

Camille Labchuk

Camille Labchuk is an animal rights lawyer and executive director of Animal Justice—Canada’s only animal law advocacy organization. Animal Justice works to promote tough new animal protection legislation, enforce laws already on the books, and fights legal cases in courtrooms. Camille’s work includes intervening in court cases to protect and enhance animals’ legal interests; filing false advertising complaints against companies making misleading humane claims; documenting Canada’s commercial seal slaughter; exposing hidden suffering on farms and zoos through undercover investigations. Camille is a frequent lecturer on animal law, and a regular contributor to publications like the Globe and Mail, iPolitics, and Huffington Post, and her work has been featured in countless media stories.

Joseph LeBlanc

Dr. Joseph LeBlanc is a life-long Northern Ontarian and the Executive Director of the Social Planning Council of Sudbury. Passionate about social planning, he has extensive expertise in community-based research and development throughout the region. Before joining the Social Planning Council of Sudbury in 2015, he worked for a diverse range of organizations, including academic institutions, non-profits, and Aboriginal non-profit governance corporations.

He holds an Honours Bachelor of Environmental Studies in Forest Conservation, an Environmental Management Certificate and a PhD in Forest Sciences from Lakehead University. A big believer in asset-based community development and its possibilities, he leads a team of highly skilled personnel, providing planning, research, development, assessment, and accountability services to a wide variety of partners and clients.

Beth MacNeil

Beth MacNeil works as Director General for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

Shane Martínez

Shane Martínez (BA, LLB, LEC) is a lawyer originally from New Brunswick. Now based in Toronto, Ontario, one of Shane’s primary areas of practice is human rights law, with a specific focus on the rights of migrant farmworkers from Mexico and the Caribbean. He litigated the first successful human rights case in Ontario on behalf of a migrant farmworker (Monrose v. Double Diamond Acres Limited, 2013 HRTO 1273), and frequently lectures on access to justice and the need for fundamental changes to the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program.

Priscilla Settee

Priscilla Settee is member of Cumberland House Swampy Cree First Nations and a Professor of Indigenous Studies and Women and Gender Studies at the University of Saskatchewan. She has won recognition nationally and internationally as an award winning professor and as a global educator/activist. She is the author of two books Pimatisiwin, Global Indigenous Knowledge Systems (2013) that looks at global Indigenous Knowledge Systems and The Strength of Women, Ahkameyimohk (2011) that examines the role of Indigenous women’s stories in establishing truth, reconciliation and social change. Dr. Settee is working on her third book on Indigenous Food Sovereignty. She is a kohkum to Nya Lily and Lola Rose.

Tammy Switucha

Tammy Switucha is the Senior Director of Domestic Food Safety Planning and Requirements with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. She has worked in the Federal Government for over 25 years and has been with the CFIA for the past 10 years. She has held various executive positions at the CFIA, in functions such as International Relations and Strategic Policy. Notably, she led the negotiation of the Food Safety Comparability Agreement with the US Food and Drug Administration under the Government of Canada’s Regulatory Cooperation Council. She was also instrumental in developing the CFIA’sresponse to the Weatherill Investigation into the Listeriosis Outbreak.

Tammy is currently leading the Agency’s efforts to modernize its regulatory framework for food safety – the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations – which have been under development since 2014. This work also involves the development of guidance material for industry stakeholders.

** Joining by special opening video message on the right to food/five years since his mission **

Olivier De Schutter

Olivier De Schutter is co-chair of IPES-Food. He served as UN Special Rapporteur on the right to food from May 2008 until May 2014 and was elected to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in 2014. Olivier De Schutter (LL.M., Harvard University ; Ph.D., University of Louvain (UCL)) is a Professor at the Catholic University of Louvain and has also taught at the College of Europe (Natolin), as a Member of the Global Law School Faculty at New York University and as Visiting Professor at Columbia University. In 2013 he was awarded Belgium’s top scientific award, the Prix Francqui, for his contribution to the advancement of EU law, the theory of governance, and human rights law. In 2002-2006, he chaired the EU Network of Independent Experts on Fundamental Rights, a high-level group of experts which advised the European Union institutions on fundamental rights issues. He has acted on a number of occasions as expert for the Council of Europe and for the European Union. Since 2004, and until his appointment as the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to food, he served as General Secretary of the International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH) on the issue of globalization and human rights. His publications are in the area of international human rights and fundamental rights in the EU, with a particular emphasis on economic and social rights and on the relationship between human rights and governance.

Panelists

Faris AhmedDirector, Policy & CampaignsUSC Canada

Faris leads USC Canada's policy work in close collaboration with global and national networks working on ecological agriculture, biodiversity and food sovereignty. He is an active member of the civil society networks of the Committee for World Food Security (CFS), the CBD Alliance and Food Secure Canada. Faris has worked at the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Oxfam, South Asia Partnership, and as a photographer/writer covering environmental issues. He holds an MA in International Development Studies from the University of Toronto.

Bita AmaniAssociate ProfessorQueen's University, Faculty of Law

Professor Amani's research interests are in the areas of Intellectual Property Law (domestic and International), Regulating Genetics and New Technologies, Biopiracy and Protection of Traditional and Cultural Knowledge, Regulatory and Ethical Issues of Medical/Scientic Research and its commercialization, Globalization and Social Justice, International Law, Regulatory Diversity, and Torts.

Peter AndréeAssociate ProfessorCarleton University

Peter Andrée is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at Carleton University. He is also cross-appointed in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies and in the Institute of Political Economy. Prof Andrée’s research focuses on the politics of food and the environment. He practices, and teaches, community-based participatory research methods. Prof. Andrée is co-editor of Globalization and Food Sovereignty: Global and Local Change in the New Politics of Food (University of Toronto Press, 2014) which examines social movements the world over seeking to build more sustainable and just food systems. He is also author of Genetically Modified Diplomacy (University of British Columbia Press, 2007), an analysis of the global politics of regulating genetically modified organisms.

Raffaele Aveta is a Research Fellow of Comparative Private Law at the Law Faculty of Seconda Università degli Studi di Napoli (SUN) where he earned a PhD in Comparative Law. From 2013 he is Professor of Cultural Property Law.

He has given lectures at Ljubljana and Cuenca University. In the academic year 2006-2007, he taught “Multiculturalism and Comparative Law” at the Jean Monnet Faculty of Political Studies and for European and Mediterranean Postgraduate Training of the SUN, B.A. Course in Political Science. In 2005-2006 he carried out a teaching activity on contract, supplementary to the course of “Anglo-American Law” at the Law Faculty of the SUN and from 2006 to 2012 to the course of Comparative Private Law therein.

He is author of many works, including: “The due diligence concept related to the purchase of objects of historical and artistic interest” (2016). “The homosexual family. Outlines of Comparative Law”, Satura, 2013; “Unequal law and multicultural procedure. A comparative analysis in relation to the discrimination and ethnicization”, ESI, 2010.

Jamie BaxterAssistant ProfessorSchulich School of Law, Dalhousie University

Jamie Baxter is an Assistant Professor at the Schulich School of Law, Dalhousie University. He writes and teaches in the areas of property, land regulation, food, and agriculture. Jamie holds degrees in economics and law from McMaster University, the University of Toronto, and Yale, and was a Canada-US Fulbright Scholar at the University of Kentucky.

Érika Bergeron-DroletLawyer

Érika Bergeron-Drolet has a diverse intellectual property law practice that covers commercial intellectual property, trade-marks, advertising and entertainment law. She also regularly advises clients on regulatory issues related to food, including labelling, licensing and food safety. Erika has a law degree from McGill University (Montreal) and a Masters of science (Msc) in Law and Finance from Oxford University (England).

Sarah Berger-RichardsonPhD CandidateMcGill University, Faculty of Law

Sarah Berger Richardson is a doctoral candidate in the Faculty of Law at McGill University. Her research focuses on the relationship between science and ethics in food law and policy. Sarah is a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada and completed her LL.M at Tel Aviv University, where she was a research fellow at the Manna Center in Food Safety and Security Fellowship. Previously, she was a law clerk at the Supreme Court of Israel and the Canada Agricultural Review Tribunal.

Laurie BeyranevandSenior Faculty Fellow for Food Law and PolicySenior Fellow of the New Economy Law CenterVermont Law School

Laurie Beyranevand is the Senior Faculty Fellow for Food Law and Policy at the Center for Agriculture and Food Systems (CAFS) and an Professor of Law. She teaches Food Regulation and Policy and Legislation and Regulation and directs several grant funded projects for CAFS. She has served as the faculty advisor to the National Animal Law Moot Court Competition teams, and the ABA Negotiations and Client Counseling Teams.

Professor Beyranevand received a BA from Rutgers College in 1999 and a JD from Vermont Law School in 2003. She clerked in the Environmental Division of the Vermont Attorney General's Office and also served as a law clerk to the Honorable Marie E. Lihotz in New Jersey. Prior to joining the faculty at Vermont Law School, Professor Beyranevand was a Staff Attorney at Vermont Legal Aid where she represented adults and children in individual cases and class action litigation involving health law issues. In that capacity, she appeared in state and federal court, as well as before administrative adjudicative bodies, and served as an appointed member of the Human Rights Committee.

Professor Beyranevand is an appointed member of the Academic Programs Committee for the Food and Drug Law Institute, and formerly served as an Executive Committee Member of the Agriculture and Food Law Section of the American Association of Law Schools. She is admitted to both the New York and Vermont State Bars, as well as the U.S. District Court, District of Vermont.

Professor Beyranevand's research and scholarship focuses on the connections between food and health.

Kelly BronsonAssistant Professor University of Ottawa, School of Sociological and Anthropological Studies

Kelly Bronson is an Assistant Professor in the School of Sociological and Anthropological Studies at University of Ottawa. She is a social scientist researching political and economic decision-making on controversial technologies like precision agriculture and hydraulic fracturing. Her research aims to bring community values and environmental demands into conversation with technical knowledge in the production of evidence-based decision-making on technologies. She has published her work in regional (Journal of New Brunswick Studies), national (Canadian Journal of Communication) and international journals (Journal of Responsible Innovation, Big Data and Society).

Abra BrynneDirector, Engagement & PolicyBC Food Systems Network

Abra Brynne grew up on a farm in Syilx Territory (south central “British Columbia”). She is a founding member of the BC Food Systems Network and has been involved in catalyzing healthy food systems in her home foodshed as well as across the province for almost 30 years. She focuses primarily on policy and the market end of the food supply chain. She is also dedicated to the ongoing process of decolonizing her worldview and praxis, assessing where Indigenous and Canadian governance systems collide, and seeking options to foster thriving Indigenous and colonial food systems.

Richard practices advocacy before all levels of court and tribunals, including civil litigation, administrative appeals and defence of environmental prosecutions. Richard provides advice and support to clients on all aspects of environmental law including regulatory compliance and approvals, spills response, contaminated land investigations and waste management.

Richard’s experience includes providing advice and support to several levels of food growers and the food preparation industry. Richard works with farms and produce providers to ensure they meet the legislative requirements of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change, including air quality, nutrient management and soil and fill guidelines. Richard also assists food production facilities to meet their waste goals and ensure compliance with federal Safe Food for Canadians Act.

Richard frequently works with clients in the food processing, land development, municipal, waste and waste water, and insurance sectors.

Marsha S. Cadogan is a post-doctoral fellow with CIGI’s International Law Research Program. Her research at CIGI is focused on the interrelationship between geographical indications and trademark laws, as well as the global implications of GIs in preferential free trade agreements. Marsha’s research interests are in IP rights and international trade, IP rights and innovation and international law and development in a global context. Marsha has a PhD in intellectual property rights law from Osgoode Hall Law School, York University. She is member of the board on Canada’s International Law Association and is called to the Bar in Ontario.

Vince CalderheadCounselPink Larkin

Vince Calderhead has been a lawyer since 1986. He recently joined Pink Larkin, a union side labour law firm in Halifax, where he has a pro bono practice restricted to strategic anti-poverty litigation.

Previously, he was a Senior Staff Counsel at Nova Scotia Legal Aid in Halifax where he litigated many social and economic rights cases since 1986. He hasinternationally recognized expertise in the area of economic, social and cultural rights. He has represented anti-poverty groups before United Nations Treaty bodies on many occasions since.

Vince worked with members of the Constituent Assembly of Nepal (2009-10) on the re-drafting of the human rights provisions of that country’s constitution as well as in South Africa where he worked with a human rights organization on the protection of the constitutional right to a basic education.

Melissa CardAssociate Director of the Institute for Food Laws & Regulations, MSUAdjunct Professor at Michigan State University’s College of Law

Melissa M. Card is the Associate Director and instructor for the Institute for Food Laws & Regulations. The Institute for Food Laws & Regulations provides a distance education program in international food law via the Internet. In addition, Melissa is an adjunct professor at Michigan State University College of Law. Previously, Melissa was an associate in the Food, Beverage & Hospitality and Litigation Practice Groups of Clark Hill PLC. She assisted food manufacturers on regulatory food and beverage law issues by ensuring companies comply with various federal regulations.

Nathalie ChalifourAssociate ProfessorUniversity of Ottawa, Faculty of Law

Nathalie Chalifour is an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Law and Co-Director of the Centre for Environmental Law and Global Sustainability at the University of Ottawa. Her research focuses on the intersection between environmental law, the economy, and social justice. Her most recent articles focus on the constitutionality of carbon pricing policies, climate litigation, equality rights and the environment and sustainable food policy. She is the co-editor of three international books, including “Energy, Governance and Sustainability” and a collection on Environmental Taxation. She was a contributing editor of a looseleaf text on Brownfields in Canada for a decade. She is currently co-leading a five year SSHRC-funded project on Environmental Justice in Canadian Law and Policy. Prior to joining the Law Faculty, Nathalie was senior advisor to the President of the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, and policy advisor for World Wildlife Fund and IUCN. She also taught at the University of Nairobi in Kenya. She holds a Doctorate in law from Stanford University (2005) and a Master in Juridical Sciences (1999) which she obtained as a Stanford Program in International Legal Studies Fellow and Fulbright scholar

Pierre Cloutier de RepentignyPhD StudentUniversity of Ottawa, Faculty of Law

Pierre Cloutier de Repentigny is a doctoral student at the University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Law and a 2017 Trudeau Scholar. His doctoral thesis, supervised by Professor Heather McLeod-Kilmurray, analyzes the marine life protection provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea through the lens of critical environmental law. It seeks to uncover the pervasive liberal biases of the framework regime preventing a sustainable relationship between marine life and humanity.

Pierre benefited from a variety of environmental law and policy experiences over the past eight years. He first started by involving himself in the political process through his election in 2008 to the Young Greens Council of Canada. He then gained public service experiences through his work with the Public Health Agency of Canada, Environment Canada, and the Cohen Commission of Inquiry into the Decline of the Sockeye Salmon in the Fraser River. Most recently, Pierre had the chance to provide volunteer assistance to lawyers working on public interest environmental law cases. These practical experiences have complemented his academic training – at the University of Ottawa (LL.L. & LL.B.) and at the University of British Columbia (LL.M.) – and has given him a deeper understanding of the interaction of environmental issues and law.

Amy Cohen

Daniel ColesLawyerOwen Bird LLP

Dan is a litigation associate with Owen Bird Law Corporation in Vancouver, BC. In 2014 Dan founded Alcohol & Advocacy a CLAWBIE award-winning blog that engages with the changing landscape of liquor laws and policies in British Columbia and across Canada. In his practice Dan acts for manufacturers, retailers and distributors of alcoholic beverages. Dan graduated from the Schulich School of Law in 2011.

Mary Coulas is a PhD student in the Department of Political Science at Carleton University. Mary studies the food policy-making process undertaken by municipal, provincial, and federal levels of governance in Canada. Currently, she is focused on A Food Policyfor Canada tracking the means of participation and stakeholder engagement, scanning of historical and current policy documents, and the development of multilevel food governance. As A Food Policyfor Canada further evolves policy instruments, implementation, and means of monitoring policy success will also be analyzed. Mary’s research is part of the research knowledge sharing partnership ‘Food: Locally Embedded, Globally Engaged’ (FLEdGE).

Xavier joined Canada’s Competition Bureau in May 2017. He currently serves as a Senior Officer in the Bureau’s Competition Promotion Branch, where he is responsible for advancing a range of activities to promote and advocate the benefits of a competitive marketplace. Notably, Xavier led the Bureau’s advocacy efforts regarding mobile food industry regulations.

Prior to joining the Bureau, Xavier served in different roles at Natural Resources Canada between 2008 and 2017 where he notably worked to advance Canada’s approach to reviewing major resource projects.

Xavier holds a master’s degree in International Studies and a bachelor’s degree in Economics and Politics from Laval University.

Maneesha DeckhaAssociate ProfessorUniversity of Victoria, Faculty of Law

Professor Deckha joined the Faculty of Law as an Assistant Professor in 2002 after practising at the Ministry of the Attorney General in Toronto and attending Columbia University, where she completed an LLM thesis on gender and cultural equality in criminal law. In addition to her appointmentat the University of Victoria, she has held the Fulbright Visiting Chair in Law and Society at New York University, has been appointed as a Scholar-in-Residence at Seattle University School of Law, and has worked as a Visiting Scholar at the Hastings Institute for Bioethics.

Professor Deckha's research interests include health law and bioethics, critical animal studies and animal law, feminist analysis of law, law and culture and law society. Her work has been published in Canada and internationally in legal and interdisciplinary venues including the McGill Law Journal, Osgoode Hall Law Journal, Canadian Journal of Women and the Law, Medical Law Review, Harvard Journal of Gender and Law, Hastings Women's Law Journal, UCLA Women's Law Journal, Animal Law Review, Journal of Animal Law and Ethics, Stanford Journal of Animal Law and Policy, and Unbound: The Harvard Journal of the Legal Left. Outside of law reviews, she has been published in Hypatia, Sexualities, and Ethics & the Environment, among other publications. She has also contributed to several anthologies relating to feminism, cultural pluralism, and health law and policy.

Marie-Claude Desjardins is a Professor at the Faculty of Law of the University of Sherbrooke (Canada). She is a Principal Researcher at the Legal Research Chair in Food Diversity and Security. She specializes in food security, sustainable development law and corporate social responsibility law. Her current research focuses on alternative forms of regulation as a way to ensure environmental protection and social development.

Terra DucheneJD CandidateUniversity of Windsor, Faculty of Law

Terra Duchene grew up around gardening and organic, sustainable agriculture. Her community instilled in her a commitment to composting and for eating local food, and from this base, she developed a strong interest in the food system and the effects that the foods we eat have on the earth. At the University of Western Ontario she completed her Honours in Psychology and explored peoples' motivations for eating different food. In Dublin, she managed a health food store where she was able to learn about a "new" local food system and the different laws of that country. Recently, her travels took her to Italy, where she took a comparative law course that further triggered her thinking about comparing food systems and how Canada can learn from other jurisdictions. She is in her second year of law school at Windsor Law and is also part of the Campus Community Garden management team. She enjoys maintaining her hands-on commitment to working the soil in addition to her academic pursuits of working in the field of food law.

Jessica Eisen is a doctoral candidate at Harvard Law School and a Visiting Researcher at Osgoode Hall Law School’s Institute for Feminist Legal Studies. Her research interests include comparative constitutional and equality law, feminist legal theory, animal law, and food law and policy. Her work has been published in the Journal of Law and Equality, the Animal Law Review, Transnational Legal Theory, the Canadian Journal of Poverty Law, Queen’s Law Journal, the Michigan Journal of Law Reform (forthcoming) and the International Journal of Constitutional Law (forthcoming).

Michael FakhriProfessorUniversity of Oregon, Faculty of Law

Michael Fakhri teaches in the areas of international economic law, commercial law, law and development, and food and agriculture. He is currently working on questions of how Inuit seal hunting in the Arctic is defining the relationship between international trade law and concepts of sovereignty. He is a faculty member of the Environmental and Natural Resource Program where he co-leads the Food Resiliency Project. He is also a Conversation Leader with Oregon Humanities where he facilitates state-wide public conversations about meanings of fair and free trade

Matteo FerrariAssistant Professor of Private LawUniversity of Trento

Matteo Ferrari is assistant professor of private law at the University of Trento, Italy, where he teaches Food law and Wine law. He has been a Marie Curie Fellow at the Faculty of Law of the McGill University, where he taught Comparative Food Law. He has widely published in different areas of food law, including food safety, geographical indications and labeling. A list of his publications can be found at: http://www.lawtech.jus.unitn.it/index.php/people/matteo-ferrari..

Patricia Fricker-BatesExecutive and LawyerLouisbourg Seafoods Ltd.

A resident of Sydney, Nova Scotia, Patricia joined the Executive Team at Louisbourg Seafoods Ltd. in February 2016 after almost 28 years with Nova Scotia Legal Aid. Patricia is a practising member of both the Nova Scotia and Cape Breton Barristers’ Societies. She also is an honours graduate of the political science program at St. F.X. University (1982) and the Bachelor of Education program (1992). She received her law degree from Dalhousie Law School in 1986 and returned to complete her Master of Laws in 1997-98. Patricia was appointed an Adjudicator of the Small Claims Court of Nova Scotia in October 2016 and recently was appointed to the Law Reform Subcommittee of the Canadian Bar Association. She offers pro-bono legal services for Supreme Court matters through the Civil Law Pro-Bono Legal Clinic which operates out of the Sydney Justice Centre.

Amelie T. GouinAssociateBorden Ladner Gervais LLP

Amélie T. Gouin is an associate in the Montréal office of Borden Ladner Gervais LLP. Ms. Gouin specialises in commercial litigation and practices mainly in the fields of competition law, advertisement and marketing, injunctions, extraordinary recourses, fraud, intellectual property and real estate law. Ms. Gouin also has a special interest for all litigation regarding false and misleading representations in the advertisement and marketing of products.

Al Hudec is a senior corporate/commercial lawyer practising in Vancouver. He works regularly on legal issues relating to the British Columbia wine and liquor industries, including purchase and sale transactions, distribution and other industry agreements, and regulatory and trade issues.

Glenford's practice is focused on corporate commercial and regulatory issues in transactional matters, including mergers and acquisitions, private equity financing, and a broad range of business law contexts. He has significant industry experience in the food sector, relating to organizations that encounter a high degree of provincial/federal regulation and those that seek to challenge regulatory regimes under which food is produced and sold in Ontario and Canada. His clients include start-ups, not-for-profits, SMEs, and multinationals.

Glenford is highly active in the food policy / food security sector in Ontario and across Canada, through his positions as director, advisor, or executive member of various not-for-profits and charities. He co-organized the first food law conference in Canada and frequently volunteers with organizations that engage with food policy issues.

Glenford is particularly interested by the problems created through the intersection of food, technology, and regulation and he brings this passion to his practice, finding solutions to legal problems faced by his clients.

Prior to founding G.S. Jameson & Company, Glenford worked at a prominent mid-size business law firm in Toronto.

Christopher Kelly-BissonPhD CandidateUniversity of Ottawa, School of Political Studies

Christopher Kelly-Bisson is a PhD candidate in the School of Political Studies at the University of Ottawa. His research documents the incidents of farmland consolidation by financial entities in Eastern Ontario, and seeks to determine the historical-material and institutional structures that result in its occurrence. He is the lead researcher on the farmland preservation policy stream for the Farming and Farmland Network of Sustain Ontario. He is also a member of the Ottawa Food Policy Council. Christopher co-owns an organic market garden specializing in regionally adapted vegetable and herb seed production.

Irena Knezevic is an assistant professor in communication, culture and health at Carleton University in Ottawa. She studies the role that communication plays in food and health environments. From food labels to cutting edge digital technologies, communication is shaping food and health systems in increasingly complex ways. Irena’s work explores how these developments affect food and health policy, community initiatives, social interactions and everyday practices of individuals.

Jodi Koberinski is enrolled as a Master's candidate at University of Waterloo investigating sustainability of Canada's pulses sector with Dr. Steffanie Scott and is mentored by Dr. Vandana Shiva, Dr. Shiv Chopra, and the late Cathleen Kneen.

Nadia Lambek is an SJD candidate at the University of Toronto and a human rights lawyer focused on food system transitions and workers’ rights. Her current research explores efforts to institutionalize the right to food, the right to food sovereignty and peasants' rights. She regularly collaborates with civil society groups on projects to build more equitable, just and sustainable food systems. Before her SJD, Nadia practiced union-side labour law and served as an advisor to United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to food, Olivier De Schutter. She is co-editor of Rethinking Food Systems: Structural Challenges, New Strategies and the Law (Springer 2014) and is adjunct faculty at Vermont Law School.

Angela LeePhD StudentUniversity of Ottawa, Faculty of Law

Angela Lee is a PhD student at the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law. Prior to commencing graduate studies, Angela completed her BA and JD at the University of British Columbia. Her research interests are interdisciplinary, encompassing environmental law, technology regulation, critical animal studies, and feminist theory. Her PhD work takes a critical perspective on an overly technocentric approach to solving complex global social and environmental problems, including those associated with food. She is the co-editor of a forthcoming volume on Food Law in Canada.

Marie-Eve LevertProgram ManagerUSC Canada

Marie-Eve Levert recently joined USC Canada - the Bauta Family Initiative on Canadian Seed Security in 2017, a program that aims to increase the quality, quantity, and diversity of ecological seeds across the country.

She has been an active member of the Organic Value Chain Roundtable (OVCRT) since 2014, a forum between the organic industry and federal government. Marie-Eve previously worked as the Director of International and Regulatory Affairs at the Canada Organic Trade Association, working on the development of policy strategies in the interest of the organic sector.

Lauren is the Manager of Government Relations and Regulatory Affairs for the Canada Organic Trade Association. New to her role, she joins COTA after having spent a few years practicing municipal law. Lauren has always been passionate about sustainable food and agriculture and has experience with various aspects of the food system; her scope ranging from international down to local. As Manager of Government Relations and Regulatory Affairs she applies her knowledge of the food system and her legal training to monitoring organic regulations and to advancing the goals of the Canadian organic industry.

Lynn McIntyreProfessor Emerita of Community Health SciencesUniversity of Calgary, Cumming School of Medicine

Dr. Lynn McIntyre is Professor Emerita of Community Health Sciences at the University of Calgary. She is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Canada in Public Health and Preventive Medicine, and a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences. She retired from her active faculty positon in November 2015 and is now 'free' to work on ways to reduce household food insecurity--inadequate access to food due to financial constraint. As a member of the PROOF research team, she has studied public policy formation and legislation on food insecurity using the Hansards of four jurisdictions within Canada.

Rob McKenzieLawyerCanada Agricultural Review Tribunal

Robert is legal counsel to the Canada Agricultural Review Tribunal (CART) whose mandate is to provide independent oversight, through the exercise of its review jurisdiction, of federal agencies' use of Administrative Monetary Penalties (AMPs) in relation to agriculture and agri-food. Robert previously worked for four years on the enforcement side of agricultural AMPs as an officer with the Canada Border Services Agency which enforces agricultural laws related to imports at ports of entry across Canada. Robert has also worked for the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal and recently completed his Master of Laws degree with a focus of Charter issues as they apply to administrative tribunals.

Heather McLeod-KilmurrayAssociate ProfessorUniversity of Ottawa, Faculty of Law

Heather McLeod-Kilmurray was the founding Director of the Center for Environmental Law and Global Sustainability at the University of Ottawa and is a past Director of the IUCN Academy of Environmental Law. Her research deals with toxic torts, environmental ethics and legal process, the Canadian oil sands, environmental justice, the relationship between science and courts, and food law including GMOs and Industrial Factory Farming. She is co-author of The Canadian Law of Toxic Torts (Canada Law Book) with Prof. Lynda Collins. She has co-edited several books in the IUCN Academy Environmental Law Series (Edward Elgar) such as Climate Law and Developing Countries (Edward Elgar) and Biodiversity and Climate Change. She teaches Environmental Law, Climate Change and Legal Change, Torts, Legal Writing, and Administrative Law. She is also a part-time member of the Ontario Environmental Review Tribunal.

Melanie McPhailLLM CandidateUniversity of Western Ontario

Melanie McPhail is a Course Instructor at the University of Western Ontario in the Faculty of Health Sciences. Melanie graduated from the University of Western Ontario's Faculty of Law with her Juris Doctor in 2016, and is currently an LLM Candidate, expected to graduate in 2018. Melanie’s research interests include advertising restrictions and freedom of expression, cannabis legalization, and health policy and the law.

From her home in Squamish, BC, Sophia Murphy's work is focused on agricultural trade rules, U.S. trade and agriculture policy, and the interests of developing countries in the multilateral trade system. Sophia has published many reports and articles, including analysis of the effects of international trade rules on development and food security, the impact of corporate concentration in the global food system, trade and poverty-related issues in the global biofuels sector, and a critique of U.S. food aid programs. Sophia has worked with IATP's Trade and Global Governance team since 1997. She joined the Institute from Geneva, where she had worked for two years with the United Nations Nongovernmental Liaison Service. Before that, she worked as a policy officer with the Canadian Council for International Cooperation in Ottawa. Sophia has a degree in Politics, Philosophy and Economics from Oxford University and a master's from the London School of Economics in Social Policy and Planning in Developing Countries. She is working on her PhD at the University of British Columbia in Resource Management and Environmental Studies with a focus on food sovereignty.

Nicole NegowettiClinical InstructorHarvard Food Law and Policy Clinic

Prior to joining FLPC, Nicole was Policy Director of the Good Food Institute, a nonprofit organization focused on creating a sustainable, healthy, and humane food system by supporting transformative plant-based and cultured food technology companies. Nicole also served as an Associate Professor of Law at the Valparaiso University School of Law from 2011- 2016. As a law professor, her teaching and research focused on food law and policy, agricultural law, and sustainability. Nicole serves on the Food & Drug Law Journal Editorial Advisory Board and is a founding member of the Academy of Food Law & Policy. She is also a co-founder of the Northwest Indiana Food Council, whose mission is to build a just, sustainable, and thriving locally-oriented food system.

Nicole graduated magna cum laude from the University of New Hampshire Law School and earned a master’s degree in Peace and Development Studies from the University of Limerick, Ireland. Following graduation from law school, Nicole clerked for the Honorable Carol Ann Conboy of the New Hampshire Supreme Court.

Martha Paynter holds a Master’s of Science in Health Research Methods from McMaster University and a Master’s in Development Economics from Dalhousie University focusing on regulation of pharmaceutical products. For eight years she worked in health systems management for Departments of Health in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. She is currently a research coordinator and student nurse at the Dalhousie School of Nursing, a member of the Halifax Breastfeeding Community of Practice Milk Bank Working Group, and a consultant for the IWK Health Centre regarding milk bank development. Martha has a deep personal and professional interest in human milk banking. She is a mother of two, with her youngest child having spent time in neonatal intensive care in 2011. She has donated litres of milk to the Northern Star Milk Bank in Calgary. This picture, of Martha and her baby Aggie in the snugli, was taken at the Rogers Hixon Ontario Milk Bank.

Anna PippusDirector of Farmed Animal AdvocacyAnimal Justice

Anna Pippus is an animal rights lawyer specializing in laws and policies that impact animals farmed for food, holding degrees in law from the University of Toronto and psychology from the University of British Columbia. She serves as director of farmed animal advocacy for Animal Justice and strategic advisor for We Animals. Anna frequently speaks and writes about animal rights issues in mainstream media, universities, bar associations, legal publications, governmental committees and meetings, and community events. Anna is a mother of two and an enthusiastic plant-based cook.

Talia RalphJD CandidateMcGill University, Faculty of Law

Talia is an editor, journalist, and 2nd year B.C.L./L.L.B candidate at McGill's Faculty of Law. She holds an Honours' degree in Multimedia Journalism from Emerson College and an M.A. in Food Systems from NYU. Talia is the co-founder and president of McGill's Food Law Society and has written about food policy for Eater, Forbes, VICE, and others. Most recently, she interned at Harvard's Food Law and Policy Clinic, where she advocated for progressive food waste policies at the local, state and national levels and drafted a report on indigenous food sovereignty.

Nandini RamanujamAssociate Professor/ Executive Director and Director of Programs Centre for Human Rights and Legal PluralismMcGill University, Faculty of Law

Associate Professor Nandini Ramanujam is the Executive Director and Director of Programs of the Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism at McGill University's Faculty of Law. She also directs the International Human Rights Internship Program as well as Independent Human Rights Internships Program. She is the McGill representative for the Scholars at Risk Network and is a member of the Steering Committee of the Scholars at Risk Network, Canada section. Her research and teaching interests include Law and Development, Institutions and Governance, Economic Justice, Food Security and Food Safety, the role of civil society and the Fourth Estate (Media) in promotion of the rule of law, as well as the exploration of interconnections between field based human rights work and theoretical discourses. She received her Doctorate in Economics from Oxford University for her dissertation on Price Mechanism in Russia: Its role in the Old Planning and the New Markets. She holds a M.Phil and a M.A. in Economics with 1st class honours from Bhopal University.

Naomi’s research and extension work supports the development of regional food systems as a key component of resilient, socially just and ecologically sound communities, and how local governments can foster food systems change. She received a B.Sc. from McGill and a Master of Land and Water Systems from the University of British Columbia. Naomi is an Articling Agrologist with the B.C. Institute of Agrologists.

Cecilia RochaProfessor and DirectorRyerson University, School of Nutrition

Cecilia is a member of the International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems (IPES-Food), and an Associate Researcher at the Centre for Studies in Food Security at Ryerson University. She participated in the development of the Toronto Food Strategy (2008-2010), was a member of the Toronto Food Policy Council (2005-2011), and was the Director of the project Building Capacity in Food Security in Brazil (2004-2010), funded by the Canadian International Development Agency. She is the author of a number of papers on food policy and programs in Brazil.

Jessica RoseJD GraduateSchulich School of Law, Dalhousie University

Karen RossÉquiterre

Karen Ross works at the national office of Équiterre, Quebec’s largest environmental NGO, on projects that advocate for pesticide reduction and stronger pesticide regulation in Canada. Karen has a PhD from the Department of Geography at Western University, with a focus on agriculture, rural development and trade, and has spent several years teaching in the Social Justice and Peace Studies program there. For the past decade, Karen has been engaged in community-based, policy and research projects focused on improving food security in Canada and internationally. Karen is co-owner and organic farmer at Cadence Ecological Farm in Ottawa.

Suzanna SabourinAssociate CounselGowling WLG

After a successful career in government and international relations in the telecommunications, broadcasting and insurance industries, Suzanne Sabourin returned to university as a mature candidate to study law in the French Common Law program of the University of Ottawa.

Suzanne is currently associate counsel in the Gowling WLG Food and Beverage Group of the Ottawa office where she practices primarily in food safety regulation, compliance and enforcement. In addition to advising on food laws and regulations, including the Safe Food for Canadians Act and the proposed Safe Food for Canadians Regulations, regulatory enforcement measures such recalls, corrective action requests and administrative monetary penalties, she assists clients with advertising, packaging and labelling, operational matters, importation, distribution and manufacturing. Suzanne interacts mainly with officials from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and Health Canada as well as provincial and territorial regulators on behalf of her clients.

Prior to joining Gowling WLG, Suzanne was Director, Legal and Regulatory Affairs for the Canadian Meat Council, the national industry association that represents Canada’s $30 billion dollar meat industry. While at the Council, Suzanne was actively engaged in the consultations underpinning the regulatory modernization initiatives of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and Health Canada on behalf of its members, Canada’s federally registered meat processors and their suppliers of equipment, technology and services. She also played a key leadership role in the CETA and TPP negotiations, the Regulatory Cooperation Council where she worked to streamline export requirements to the United States, and standards setting within the WHO/FAO Codex Alimentarius Commission. Suzanne was also a member of the government-industry working group that steered the WTO Country of Origin Labelling (COOL) dispute with the United States to a successful outcome for Canada.

Suzanne is an alumnus from the University of Ottawa. She obtained her B.A. and M.A. in Political Science in 1980 and 1983, respectively and her LL.B. in Common Law in 2008. Suzanne has been a member in good standing of the Law Society of Upper Canada since 2009.

Vanita SachdevaJD CandidateMcGill University, Faculty of Law

Vanita has a master’s degree in Soil Science and worked as an agronomist in Canada and Kenya. She specialized in converting waste into different fertilizers. She helped lobby to change regulations to allow innovative soil amendments on edible crops. She is currently a 3rd year law student at McGill University, where she worked with the Quebec Environmental Law Centre and the Just Solutions Immigration Legal Clinic. She is a founding member of the Law Needs Feminism movement and organizes mentorship opportunities for women in law.

Lucy SharrattCoordinatorCanadian Biotechnology Action Network

Lucy Sharratt works in Ottawa as the Coordinator of the Canadian Biotechnology Action Network, also known as CBAN. CBAN brings together 16 organizations including farmer associations, environmental groups and international development organizations, all of which have serious concerns about the application of genetic engineering in food and farming. Lucy previously worked as a campaigner and researcher on this issue at the Sierra Club of Canada and the Polaris Institute. Lucy also coordinated the International Ban Terminator Campaign which secured a strengthened global moratorium on genetically engineered sterile seed technology.

Valerie Tarasuk is a Professor in the Department of Nutritional Sciences and the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto. Her research extends to Canadian food policy and population-level dietary assessment, but her primary focus has been household food insecurity. Her work in this area has included several studies to examine the effectiveness of community-based responses, including food banks and charitable meal programs. Most recently, she has led PROOF, an interdisciplinary research program funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and designed to identify effective policy approaches to reduce household food insecurity in Canada.

David Travers, QCBarrister practicing from 6 Pump Court Chambers London & Visiting Professor in Business Accountability, University of South Wales

David Travers QC is a barrister practicing in England and Wales from 6 Pump Court Chambers in the Temple in London. He was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 2010.

For over three decades the core elements of his practice have been Consumer law in general and food law in particular, as well as Health, Safety and Environment. He is recognised in the leading UK directories as a leader in these fields as well as having been named for his work in Health and Safetyby the US based ‘Best Lawyers’. On a number of occasions he has been named Food Barrister of the year, Regulatory Barrister of the year or Consumer Barrister of the year. David was elected an Honorary Fellow of the Society of Food Hygiene and Technology for his work in the sector.

In addition to practise at the Bar, David is Visiting Professor in Business Accountability at the University of South Wales (formerly at Newport Business School) and the author of two books and numerous articles. He has lectured in Europe, and North and South America including lecturing on Product Recall at the International Bar Association Annual Conference in Washington DC. Helectured at Belo Horizonte in Brazil on Food Fraud and its impact on international trade in the light of the Carne Fraca scandal. He has made appearances on BBC radio’s flagship consumer programme‘You and Yours’

Sabrina Tremblay-Huet is a doctoral candidate in law at the University of Sherbrooke. She is a research assistant for a project on labelling of food products of animal origin within the context of the Legal Research Chair in Food Diversity and Security. Her research interests are international legal theory, human rights and animal law

Renata WatkinPhD CandidateUniversity of Ottawa, Faculty of Law

Renata P. Watkin is a PhD candidate at the Faculty of Law of the University of Ottawa. She holds an LLB from the University of Ottawa (2010), a Master’s Degree in International Affairs from Carleton University (2001) and has lectured on international trade law at Carleton University for several years. Prior to becoming a lawyer, Renata Watkin was a diplomat specializing in international trade. She has been drawn to the area of geographical indications as a function of her international trade experience and her studies as a wine specialist, having been granted the Wine and Spirit Advanced Certificate with distinction by the London-based Wine and Spirit Education Trust (WSET).

Amanda Wilson is a Postdoctoral Fellow at Lakehead University, working in partnership with Food Secure Canada. Her work is focused on community academic collaboration in the context of national food policy processes, as well as supporting knowledge mobilization and capacity building in the areas of new farmers and northern food. She has a PhD in Sociology from Carleton University, and has worked with several NGOs in research, project management and community outreach. She first became involved in food systems work through five years co-managing an organic small-scale vegetable farm in Ottawa. Outside of work, she is a passionate social justice organizer and an avid gardener. She also teaches sociology at Carleton University and the University of Ottawa.

Sara ZborovskiPartnerNorton Rose Fulbright

Sara Zborovski practises regulatory, commercial and intellectual property law. She assists companies regulated by Health Canada in obtaining market access and in all areas of compliance. Ms. Zborovski has experience in a wide range of matters involving the innovative pharmaceutical and biotechnology, natural health product, medical device and food and beverage industries.

On the compliance side, Ms. Zborovski assists clients in developing SOPs and compliance policies, ensuring compliant packaging and labelling (including label reviews) and provides strategic advice on advertising and marketing programs (including assistance with pre-clearance agencies and representing companies in disputes before the Pharmaceutical Advertising Advisory Board and Advertising Standards Canada). She also advises clients on federal and provincial privacy laws, particularly as these relate to healthcare, and federal and provincial access to information and freedom of information matters.

Ms. Zborovski also works with clients in all industries on matters relating to product safety, including crisis management, advocacy before the inspectorate and product recalls.

Ms. Zborovski has particular experience with Federal Court review of regulatory decisions, lobbying and the Patented Medicines (Notice of Compliance) Regulations. She is an active member of the Canadian IP and advocacy communities, a regular contributor to a number of publications and an active blogger on food safety and other regulatory matters.

When is the Conference?

The conference will be held Thursday, November 2nd, 2017, to Saturday, November 4th, 2017.

Who Should Attend?

The conference is primarily geared towards legal practitioners, researchers and policy developers looking to contribute to the conversation around food law and policy in Canada.

That being said, we can’t emphasize enough how valuable the voices of all stakeholders will be in having a well-rounded discussion in this area. If you fit any of these categories, definitely consider joining:

Are you a food producer or manufacturer who sees inefficiencies in the regulations that impact your day-to-day and bottom line?

Do you work in farming, fishing, the restaurant industry, or any other area that gives you a unique perspective on food law and policy development and an idea for how Canada can improve?

Are you a not-for-profit focused on food security, sustainable food production or food waste in Canada or a consumer passionate about how your purchasing impacts the food system?

Is the Conference Accredited by Law Societies?

According to LSUC requirements, this program contains 1 hour and 30 minutes of Professionalism Content (session on Food Fraud).

The Law Society of New Brunswick has approved the conference for 18 hours of CPD.

The Law Society of British Columbia has approved the conference for 18.5 hours of CPD.

Who is Speaking?

The conference agenda features an outstanding roster of speakers from a variety of sectors and representing diverse areas of expertise. More information on our keynote speakers is available HERE. More information on our panelists is available HERE.

Parking in the lots at Saint Paul's costs $3.00/hour, up to a maximum of $10.00 per day. Payment is by coins ($1 and $2) or credit cards (Visa or MasterCard). You must purchase a ticket from the Park & Pay machine and clearly display the ticket inside your windshield. Parking Infraction Notices will be issued without permits.

It is possible, but not convenient, to park on side streets around the University.

Where there is no sign, you can park for 3 hours maximum (if you move your vehicle after 3 hours, you must move at least 300 meters). This condition applies from 7:00am to 7:00pm.

Where there is a sign, the same rules apply, but parking is not allowed between 3:30pm to 5:30pm.

Les Suites Hotel Ottawa offers a preferred group rate of $169.00/night for their premiere one bedroom suite, and $299.00/night for their two bedroom suite. Group Code: FOODLAW (secure online reservations: goo.gl/EP4LKJ)

More Questions?

Taking Stock:Call for Submissions

Our call for submissions has now closed. If you would like further information, please email conference@foodlaw.ca

A Call for Submissions for our Second Annual Food Law & Policy Conference

What is the state of food law and policy in Canada today? For the 2nd annual Canadian Food Law and Policy Conference we take stock of our food law and policy schemes – from the federal level through the provincial and territorial down to the municipal – and strategize ways to improve them.

Last year’s conference provided an opportunity to develop and define the field of food law and policy in Canada. Our second conference allows us to go further and map the content, scope and reach of our food laws and policies. It provides a unique opportunity to assess the ways our food laws, policies and regulatory tools are succeeding in building just, equitable, vibrant, innovative, resilient and sustainable food systems, while also documenting how they contribute to hunger, malnutrition, social exclusion, contamination, exploitation and environmental degradation.

The conference comes at a critical juncture for Canada’s food systems and the various laws and policies that govern them. This year – 2017 – marks five years from former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food, Olivier De Schutter’s visit to Canada and subsequent report to the UN, in which he raised concerns about systemic food insecurity across Canada (particularly in the North and for isolated communities), the health impacts of the current food system, and the lack of coordinated law and policy responses from all levels of government. It is an important moment to step back, see how far (or not far) we have come and reorganize.

This year also marks a crucial turning point for the national governance of our food systems. After years of lobbying by civil society, the Trudeau government, with the Department of Agricultural and Agri-Food taking the lead, have begun the process of developing a National Food Policy. Public consultations have begun and will continue, creating an important opportunity for civil society, industry and the legal community to participate in the development of our food systems. As a result, discussions about our current food systems, what sort of food systems we want, and how better food laws and policies can help us get there, have never been so relevant and urgent.

Finally, important developments in the regulation and trade of food domestically and internationally will reshape the practice of law in the food sector. For example, new labelling frameworks, including front of packaging labelling and nutritional informational labelling, will change the way food is packaged, sold and consumed in Canada. At the same time, the CFTA and CETA have vaulted Canada and its provinces into a new era of harmonization, while proposed regulations may change food safety and other legal requirements for businesses that import food, or that prepare food for import or cross-province distribution, with implications for the health and safety of Canadians (as well as those abroad) and for the food business sector.

From November 2-4, 2017, we will bring together thought leaders and stakeholders for a three-day national conference at the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law to help chart the future of food law and policy in Canada.

Together, we will ask:

What role does law and policy play in governing our food systems?

What values currently underpin our food laws and policies?

In what ways are food laws, policies and regulatory tools succeeding in building just, equitable, vibrant, innovative, resilient and sustainable food systems?

In what ways do they contribute to hunger, malnutrition, social exclusion, contamination, exploitation and environmental degradation?

What new developments in case law and regulation are impacting industry, producers and consumers in food systems and where is government intervention lacking?

How are Canada’s food laws and policies impacting food systems abroad, how are they influenced by international and transnational laws and standards and what role does Canada play in global food system governance?

How can improved food laws and policies address failures in food system governance and what do these improved laws and policies look like?

Practitioners, scholars, policymakers, adjudicators, activists, students and other thought leaders are invited to submit individual- presentation or group-panel proposals of no more than 300 words on any topic related to the conference theme by June 9, 2017 to conference@foodlaw.ca. While conference papers will not be required, they are encouraged and will be published on the conference website. Any questions may be sent to the same address. We look forward to working with our partners in developing this exciting event, and to welcoming participants to Ottawa in November.

Practicing Lawyer?

In 2016 we offered 12 hours of accredited CPD Content on food law, delivered by top practitioners from Canada and the United States. Our interdisciplinary event enabled attendees to reach and to learn from a diverse group of policymakers, industry, and jurists.

Non-legal Scholar or Advocate?

This conference linked scholars with expertise in food sciences, public health, nutrition, environmental sciences, and many other disciplines with legal actors and scholars, providing a unique forum to present food research from a legal perspective.

From Industry, Government, or an NGO?

Our 2016 event provided attendees with critical legal perspectives and forecasts on current and upcoming challenges to our food systems. Attendees also gained insight on how actions by regulators, industry or non-state actors were changing our food laws and policies.

Legal Scholar or Jurist?

Our first conference created a network of food law scholars from 8 provinces and 7 countries. Our interdisciplinary event created an opportunity for scholars to engage with system actors and develop opportunities for policy entrepreneurship.